#KiefferBellows

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HARTFORD WOLF PACK LOSE TO ROCKFORD ICE HOGS IN FIRST VISIT EVER TO HART CITY

By: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - The Rockford Ice Hogs won the one-on-one battles and received a goal and an assist from Lukas Reichel and Dylan Sikura to pace them to a 4-2 win over the Hartford Wolf Pack at the XL Center. "We got our chances in the third (period), and we didn't get much in the way of rebounds. Once we forced the issue we got a lot more chances. We just couldn't score. I thought the chances were pretty even between both squads. We didn't get the offense we wanted, but then again we are missing five or six of our top forwards right now. Our guys worked hard, we just didn't get the results we wanted, "Pack Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said in his post-game comments. In the third period, the Wolf Pack trailed by three when the Wolf Pack used solid forechecking to force a two-on-none and made it count. The Wolf Pack had a pair of forwards force a turnover. Guttman was in the offensive zone at the Pack blue line and swiped by Tanner Fritz after Bobby Trivigno's forecheck forced the turnover. Then Fritz and Trivigno broke out on the odd man rush. At 6:06 came the game's only clean scoring chance for the Wolf Pack. In a give-and-go situation, Fritz shuffled it back to Trivigno, who put in his fourth goal of the season with Matt Rempe trailing to make it an actual three-on-none. "We had a lot good opportunities. We played right at five-on-five. We just have to find a way to win these one goal games. Too many are going the other way on us. We're making those first or second but, we just have to capitalize and put it in the back of the net. Getting down 3-0, it's tough to dig out of that hole," remarked Trivigno. Knoblauch was pleased but offered a caveat. "It's good we got that chance and showed we know what to do with (the puck); it's just we're not getting a chance like that that often. Bobby made a good play there….We just need more of them." The Pack's netminder, Louis Domingue, made two saves on Reichel and Alec Regula to keep the Wolf Pack within shouting distance early. The Pack played with a sense of urgency, getting some net-front presence and offensive zone time in the process. Will Cullye made a shorthanded pass to Turner Elson with a backhander just before the goal was stopped by the goaltender, Jaxon Stauber. At 15:42, a rare net-front rebound came off an Andy Welinski shot. Cullye attempted to score, but Stauber gobbled it up. Ryan Lohin was wide-open on the right wing side and was stopped with no other chances as Stauber controlled the rebounds effectively. "When you have stretch like this, we just have to simplify our game. We have to hone in on our special teams right now and try to get it to click and get some pucks in the back of the net and make it a totally different game than it becomes," Trivigno said. The Pack continued to inch closer. They had a tremendous late-game power play opportunity but only managed one shot, Welinski's left point blast with 18.5 seconds left in the power play. With 4.5 seconds left, Brandon Scanlin's rocket from the left point converted Cristiano DiGiacinto's feed from behind the net and saw his first pro goal go to the short side that sailed past Stauber cleanly. The Wolf Pack had 15 shots in the third period and 30 in the game. It was undoubtedly their most productive evening period, but hockey is played for 60 minutes, not just 20. In the second period, at 6:19, Rockford went up 2-0 as Adam Clendening was at the right point inside the blue line. He took a Sikura pass up from the right wing half-wall and fired a cross-ice pass to Cole Guttman, who one-timed it over Domingue's glove for his fifth goal of the season. The Ice Hogs managed the puck efficiently and kept possession. They limited time and space on the Wolf Pack whenever they had the biscuit making Stauber's job that much easier. When the Wolf Pack did have a chance, it was usually a "one and done." There were few second or third chances for the Pack. On the flip side, Domingue did his best to keep the score close with stops on Brett Seney, David Gust, and Louis Crevier. The first period was a tight-checking affair, with both teams unfamiliar with the other. Due to injuries and call-ups, the Pack was fielding a team filled with ECHL call-ups that had little practice time together. Rockford had played the night before, and it showed. Rockford got the first break on a Reichel dump-in. The Pack said it hit a lousy board behind their net as Domingue glared at the off-ice crew nearby and smacked the end boards with his goalie stick, but the video replay showed the puck glanced in off his skate and his stick in front of the net. Sikura quickly turned around and swept his seventh of the season into the open net at 13:19. Just a few minutes earlier, Domingue had used his left pad to make one of his best saves of the night. He extended his leg completely out on Seney twice on the right side of the net at 11:10. LINES: Ruesschhoff  - Trivigno - Smith Henriksson - Whalen - DiGiacinto Fritz - Cullye - Elson Hillman - Lohin - Rempe Emberson - Robertson Zac Jones - Welinski Scanlin - Giuttari Garand SCRATCHES: Gustav Rydahl (Day-to-Day, Lower-Body ) Lauri Pajuniemi  (Day-to-Day, Upper-Body) Tim Gettinger (Out For a Month, Upper-Body) Patrick Khordorenko (Season Over - Shoulder Surgery) NOTES: Blake Hillman moved from defense to play left wing on the fourth line. No decision has been made on tomorrow's starting goalie. The Rockford team bus arrived late as they got lost coming from Springfield. The Wolf Pack got some tough news early this afternoon as captain Jonny Brodzinski and a defenseman were recalled by the Rangers. Defenseman Zac Jones is coming back down to Hartford on a conditioning stint after being a healthy scratch. "It's great to have him back. I'm very close with Zach from our days UMASS. It's a tough thing, because you want him up there, "remarked Trivigno. Knoblauch got an early Christmas gift. "Its good to have him here and we'll enjoy having him while he's here." Ryan Lohin was inserted into the lineup for the Wolf Pack. Gustav Rydahl was held out and is likely to play in Providence. He's trying to come off an upper-body injury. Lohin was recalled from Jacksonville last week. The Pack is already 15 points behind the first-place Providence Bruins and ten points behind the fourth-place Charlotte Checkers in what is the last divisional playoff spot. This is after just 18 games played. The Hershey Bears have won five in a row and are 8-2 in their last 10. They were idle on Saturday. The Wolf Pack have a mid-afternoon (3:00 PM) date tomorrow in Providence with the Bruins led by ex-Pack Vinni Lettieri. Rockford is in fourth in the AHL Central by three points ahead of the Iowa Wild, who they return home to play on Tuesday night. The Wolf Pack had a whole week before their first-ever meeting with the Rockford Ice Hogs, the top affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks. They have started goalie Jackson Stauber, the son of former Wolf Pack/New Haven Nighthawks goalie Robb Stauber. The elder Stauber also won the Hobey Baker Award at Minnesota and, as a sophomore, won the gold medal as the head coach of the 1998 US Olympic Women's team in Nagano, Japan. Rockford's assistant coach is former Wolf Pack Jared Nightingale. Nightingale remembers his time fondly in Hartford and Springfield as he played in both places. "Hartford was always good to me. The second time (2007-2008) I was playing my best, but there was too many contracts, so they had to let me go." One of his first pro games was with Springfield in Harford. Dale Purinton chased him all over the ice. "That was my baptism. Dale screaming my name at me chasing me from one side of the rink to the other." In regards to his first goal, "I scored so few. You think I'd remember them all." Both parent teams, the Rangers and Blackhawks, met last night in an Original Six meeting at MSG. Chicago won that game 5-2. The Ice Hogs won 4-2 in Springfield on Friday night behind three assists by Brett Seney and a goal and an assist by Lukas Reichel and Cole Guttman. Two other Midwestern teams, the Milwaukee Admirals and Grand Rapids Griffins, come in next weekend. So in two weeks, the Wolf Pack will make a (sadly) rare Midwestern-road trip to Rockford, Milwaukee, and Grand Rapids in kind. Milwaukee features current Admirals captain and former Wolf Pack captain and UCONN Husky Cole Schneider from their AHA years and another former Husky of recent vintage from their Hockey East incarnation, Jáchym Kondelík. Milwaukee beat Manitoba 4-3 in a shootout Thursday. Schneider scored a team-best ninth goal, and Kondelik had an assist. Milwaukee lost a matinee game Saturday in Winnipeg at the Canada Life Centre, with the Moose winning 3-2 as ex-Pack Nick Jones earned the game's first star with a goal and an assist for the Moose. Then Grands Rapids, where current Wolf Pack GM Ryan Martin (Simsbury, CT) spent eight years before coming to Hartford. Former Pack defenseman Steven Kampfer resides there, just reassigned on a conditioning stint, is goalie Magnus Hellberg. He was claimed off waivers for the third time this year by Detroit. Finally, Wyatt Newpower of UCONN spent four years in Hockey East and is in his third pro year. Hellberg had 34 saves last night and Newpower an assist in Friday's 4-1 loss to Texas. Also playing is a Wolf Pack training camp invitee last year, cut on the last day, and an ex-Bridgeport Sound Tigers, Cédric Lacroix, and Austin Czarnik, who was just recalled for a second time by the Red Wings. Griffins' assistant coach is a former Division II/III UConn Husky  ECAC East, former Hartford Whaler of two years, and former New Haven Nighthawk of 13 games, Todd Krygier. The other assistant is ex-Ranger Mike Knuble, and the head coach is a former Springfield Falcon, Ben Simon. The Bridgeport Islanders saw three players go up to the New York Islanders in Simon Holmstrom, Cole Bardreau, and Hudson Fasching. Bardreau was sent back Saturday. Two forwards, Collin Adams and Jimmy Lambert, the nephew of current Islanders coach, former Sound Tigers bench boss, and former Nighthawks player Lane Lambert, were both recalled from Worcester Railers (ECHL). Ex-Sound Tiger Kieffer Bellows cleared waivers and was reassigned to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms by the Philadelphia Flyers. They come into the XL Center Wednesday. Hershey released former UCONN forward and Yale grad Kevin O'Neil without ever playing a game and heads back to the South Carolina Stingrays (ECHL). Ex-Pack Phil Di Guiseppe remains a cap liability until the Canucks trade is made to alleviate the issue was sent down from Vancouver to Abbottsford. Drake Rymsha, the son of ex-Nighthawk Andy Rymsha, was recalled by Bakersfield from the Ft. Wayne Komets (ECHL). Peter DiLiberatore (Quinnipiac University-ECACHL) is recalled from the Savannah Ghost Pirates (ECHL) to Henderson. On Friday, #6 nationally ranked UCONN lost the back end of a home-and-home series 7-3 to Merrimack College. In addition, they have been outscored in their last three games by a combined score of 15-6. Bryce Brodzinski, the younger brother of Pack captain, Jonny Brodzinki, scored and extended his point-scoring streak to five games in a 5-0 win Minnesota win over Michigan State in a Big 10 matchup both teams play tonight again at Munn Arena at Michigan State. HARTFORD WOLF PACK HOME Read the full article

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CANTLON: HARTFORD WOLF PACK OFFSEASON VOL 4

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - The New York Rangers defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins in a dramatic first-round playoff series and now face an elimination game with the Carolina Hurricanes (nee Hartford Whalers) who lead the series three games to two in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Meanwhile, back in the American Hockey League (AHL), the two teams in the Atlantic Division, the Springfield Thunderbirds and the Charlotte Checkers, are meeting in a 2-3-2 format. Springfield dominated from start to finish in Game 1 on Sunday afternoon at the Mass Mutual Center, crushing the Checkers 6-0. Sam Anas had two goals and an assist, while Joel Hofer, the game's First Star, had a 35-shot shutout. (GAME SHEET) EX- HARTFORD WOLF PACK PLAYERS MOVING Ex-Hartford Wolf Pack forward Brodie Dupont has officially retired and becomes the full-time head coach for the Cardiff Devils (Wales-EIHL). Under Dupont's leadership behind the bench, Cardiff won the EIHL championship. He is the 96th ex-Wolf Pack/CT Whale player to enter coaching. Dupont played as a Wolf Pack and CT Whale member and was weighing an offer to return to Connecticut. Ex-Wolf Pack, Ryan Gropp departs IF Björklöven (Sweden Allvenskan). Another ex-Pack, Nick Ebert, leaves Örebro HK (Sweden-SHL) for HV 71 (Sweden-SHL) next year. In his tenth year of Polish hockey, New Britain's Mike Cichy leaves GKS Tychy (Poland-PZIHL) and signs with Unia Oswiecim. Rayen Petrovicky, the son of former Hartford Whaler Róbert Petrovicky, moves from TUTO (Finland-Mestis) home to HK Dukla Trencin (Slovakia-SLEL). Brooklyn Kalmikov, the son of former Sound Tiger Konstantin Kalmikov, saw his Moncton Wildcats (QMJHL) eliminated. So he's now heading from "The Q" and signs with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for next season. MORE MOVES Closer to home, following his sophomore year, Ryan Doolin (Westminster Prep) left Sacred Heart University (AHA) and transferred to D3 Colby College (ME) (NESCAC). Travis Turnbull, the younger cousin of former New Haven Nighthawk Randy Turnbull, heads from Schwenniger (Germany-DEL) to EHC Straubing (German-DEL). Jack Marottollo (North Haven), the son of Sacred Heart University (AHA) head coach C.J. Marottollo, goes from South Shore (NCDC) and enrolls at Wesleyan University (Middletown) (NESCAC) in the fall. THOSE STILL PLAYING MEANINGFUL HOCKEY... In June, the major junior playoffs continue in Canada, leading to a later-than-planned Memorial Cup in an old AHL city, Saint John, New Brunswick. In the WHL, current Ranger's prospect Matt Rempe, who's playing with the Seattle Thunderbirds, has four goals and five points in ten games, won their Game 7 finale against the Portland Winterhawks to advance to the next round. Goalie Dylan Garand, heading to Hartford on his Entry-Level Contract (ELC) in the fall, moves on. Garland's Kamloops Blazers (48-17-3-0) will play against Rempe's Thunderbirds (44-18-4-2) in the WHL Western Conference championship beginning Friday. Garand's 1.51 Goals-Against-Average (GAA) is the WHL's second-best in the post-season. The Red Wing's 6'6 prospect, Sebastian Cossa of the Edmonton Oil Kings, is slightly better at 1.48. Both have three shutouts. OTHER HARTFORD WOLF PACK PROSPECTS Another fall training camp player is winger Ryder Korczak of the Moose Jaw Warriors. Korczak was last week's WHL Player of the Week with ten points in ten games. Unfortunately, the Winnipeg Ice eliminated the Warriors. In the WHL Bantam Draft, Lochlan Tetarenko, the son of Joey Tetarenko (Beast of New Haven), was selected in the third round (62nd overall) by the Saskatoon Blades. In the US Priority portion of the draft, the son of Whaler Grant Jennings, forward Gordon Jennings, was taken in the second round (35th overall) by the Prince Albert Raiders. The Alaskan native played last season for the U-14 Alaska Oilers AA team. California had the most players taken, with 44 drafted at 17, followed by Minnesota with 13 and Texas with nine. WESTERN CONFERENCE Over in the OHL, two top Rangers prospects will compete against one another in the Western Conference Championship. Will Cullye of the Windsor Spitfires has eight points in eleven games. That's good for second-best on the team. Their opponent, Brennan Othmann of the Flint Firebirds, has a team-best 17 points on eight goals in 12 games. Othmann had three assists in a series-clinching Game 5 with a big 7-1 clincher over Sault Ste. Marie. Each of these players is the captain of their respective team. They met in February in a wild 7-6 overtime game, with each recording a hat trick. Cullye wears #13 and Othmann #78. The Spitfires won seven of the eight games in the regular season, and they will play for the Wayne Gretzky Conference trophy. The series started on Saturday in Windsor. Cullye had an assist and game-high eight shots while Othmann went pointless and had one shot. Game two is on Monday. WINDSOR SERIES Listen to the Windsor series on old school over-the-air radio on CKLW-AM 800 (Windsor-Detroit) and online. The Eastern Conference series begins on Friday between Hamilton and North Bay. The game can also be heard on CHML-AM 900 (Hamilton). There were no Ranger prospects in the QMJHL, but former Wolf Pack, Ranger, and Springfield Falcon, and now a head coach, Gordie Dwyer, saw his Saint John Sea Dogs eliminated in the first round of the President Cup playoffs. However, the team does get an automatic Memorial Cup cup berth as the host city. ANOTHER RANGERS SIGNEE Centerman Gustav Ryhahl signed a one-year, one-way, free-agent deal with the Rangers paying him $750K in the NHL and AHL. Rydahl, 27, is a 6'3 and 201-pounds physical player from the LeMat Trophy Swedish Hockey League champs Färjestad BK (Sweden-SHL), where he amassed 30 points in 44 games. In the Clark Cup (USHL) best-of-five series final, the Sioux City Musketeers are tied at one game apiece with the Madison (WI) Capitols. A few CT names dot the rosters of both teams. Jake Percival (Avon) plays for Sioux City and is a UCONN recruit for the fall. Madison has Ohio State (Big 10), Richard (DJ) Hart (Stamford), and Westport's and QU-bound in the fall Matt McGroarty (Brunswick School). Hart, who played at UCONN in Hartford twice this year, is a fall commit. COLLEGE HOCKEY The changes at Storrs keep coming. According to sources heading to Boston University will be UCONN's associate head coach West Haven's Joe Pereira, an ex-Sound Tiger, also formerly of South Kent Prep. He played as an undergraduate for 139 games. He was a  captain his senior season, as one of the new assistant coaches for Jay Pandolfo's staff after his nine-year run as an assistant to the Huskies Mike Cavanaugh. He began his college coaching career at Sacred Heart University (ACHA Division-2) as the head coach of their D2 club team, winning the Northeast Collegiate Hockey League championship in 2012-13. As a player, he spent two years as a minor league professional. Augustana (SD) University Vikings, the 62nd and newest NCAA D1 program, has been accepted as a new conference member for the CCHA, bringing the league to eight teams. TRANSFERS ACCEPTED One way for a team to improve its roster is to dip into the transfer portal. NCAA D1 Independent, the Long Island University Sharks, announced seven transfers on Thursday. The transfers are of all types, undergraduate, grad, inter-conference, non-conference, several Division-3s to Division-1, and even several cross-continent moves. As of this week, the total jumps to a staggering 157, comprised of 88 grad transfers and 69 school transfers. The Sacred Heart Pioneers (AHA) gets Julian Kislin from Northeastern (HE). The Quinnipiac Bobcats lose sophomore winger Ty Smilanic to Wisconsin (Big 10). Smilanic's NHL rights were traded from Minnesota to Arizona. Meanwhile, the Bobcats received three grad transfers. Over at Yale, they saw a grad transfer in goalie Justin Pearson who heads to UCONN (HE) next year. UCONN's Cassidy Bowes has yet to declare his next destination. Still, according to several sources, he's likely to play Canadian college hockey out in Western Canada, which is closer to his home in either the CWUAA, ACAC, or the BCIHL. MORE MOVES Rangers prospect Simon Kjellberg has left RPI (ECACHL) for the greener pastures of Northern Michigan (CCHA). A laundry list of players remains uncommitted, including Kyle Johnson of Yale and John Fusco of Harvard. Eric Gotz, the nephew of former Hartford Wolf Pack player and Head Coach Ken Gernander, heads from Michigan Tech (CCHA) to Vermont (HE), where his twin uncles matriculated as young men, Jim and Jerry Gernander. John Emmons Jr. commits to Miami (OH) (NCHC) from the Oakland (MI) Grizzlies (HPHL). IIHF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS US had a close call winning 3-2 in OT over defensive-minded Austria. Ex-Sound Tiger Kieffer Bellows scored in the game. Unfortunately, the US dropped their second game 4-1 to Finland. Next was a battle with Great Britain, which had Jackson Whistle in the net. He is the nephew of former New Haven Nighthawk Rob Whistle. Bellows scored twice in a 3-0 win. The US knocked off Sweden on Adam Gaudette's hat trick as ex-Springfield Falcon TJ Tynan, the two-time reigning AHL MVP, set him up with his second helper of the game. Canada saw Pierre-Luc Dubois score twice in an opening 5-1 win. In other games, the Czechs fell to Sweden 4-3 as ex-Pack Tomáš Kundrátek, and ex-UCONN recruit Matej Blümel scored in a comeback bid, but a 5-3 loss and then lost to Austria in their second game. Michael Spacek scored in a 5-1 win over Latvia. HUSKA Current Wolf Pack Adam Húska was in net for Slovakia's 5-1 loss to Canada and 5-3 loss to Switzerland. Huska gave up a goal to ex-Springfield Falcon Denis Malgin (one of five ex-Falcons playing in the tourney). Even though he made some acrobatic diving saves, the lack of goal support followed him to Finland from Hartford. The Slovaks did make the quarterfinals with a 4-3 win over Kazakhstan. Húska faced little work (11 shots), and all three goals resulted from direct rebounds. Huska picked up a secondary assist on the third goal. The Slovak team capitalized with three power play goals on Pavel Akolzin's ill-advised major for charging in center ice right in front of the Kazakhstan bench. The Slovaks secured their chance to continue to play by beating Italy 5-2, with Húska manning the cage. Surefire top draft pick in July, Jaroslav Slafkovky, scored again. Ex-Pack Andres Ambühl was the hero setting up the game-winning goal with 4:21 left for Switzerland in a 3-2 win over Kazakhstan. Sweden has played ex-Pack Magnus Hellberg in the net for three of their four games. One of them was winning a championship-level-like final, a 3-2 shootout win over Finland. Former QU Bobcat Latvian Kārlis Čukste earned the secondary assist on the game-winner with 6:19 left to play as Latvia rallied for a late 4-3 win over the British. HARTFORD WOLF PACK HOME Read the full article

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CANTLON: PACK HIT THE ROAD FOR THREE-IN-THREE

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings CROMWELL, CT - The Hartford Wolf Pack have passed the halfway mark on the 2019-20 season and they do so sitting atop the Atlantic Division with a 19-8-2-5 (45 points) record. It's hard to imagine that back in September anyone would have picked this group to be heading into the second half of the season in first place in the Atlantic Division and among the best teams in the AHL. One of the factors for the Pack resurgence and current position in the race to the Calder Cup is their persistence and growth as a team-unit. It cannot be overlooked. “The biggest thing is, we have won so many one-goal games and a big factor is a mature team wins a majority of those games. We have handled leads well late (in games) and have had very strong third periods." Pack head coach Kris Knoblauch said. The Pack are unbeaten with the lead after two periods with a 15-0-1-2 record. Hartford has also scored their share of miraculous goals late in games and did that twice to send it to overtime. "The other big reason (for the turnaround) is our goaltending of Igor (Shesterkin) and Adam (Huska). They have made stop-after-stop and our defense has done such a good job with blocks like we did Tuesday (a 3-2 win over Bridgeport). Right now we're a little fortunate,” Knoblauch stated. Knoblauch is enthusiastic about his team, but does not want to be over-confident. Because the Pack are in first place, Knoblauch was honored by being named one of the AHL All-Star game's coaches. The game will be played at the end of January in Ontario, CA. Before that though, the Wolf Pack have a lot of work to do starting Friday when they head to Providence to take on the Bruins. The game will be their seventh of the season, and they won’t see the Baby Bruins, who they've been trading first place with back-and-forth for the past month, until March 1st. Shesterkin will start Friday night, making it his first three-consecutive-game-starts for the Wolf Pack as he transitions and adjusts to North American rinks. “We're going to enjoy Igor for as long as we have him, because he will be in the NHL at some point. Providence is a very good team, well-coached and they have very good structure. Our records are similar, but Shesterkin has been the difference in several games.  We also have capitalized in key situations against them, and that has been the difference.” After the trip to the Dunkin Donuts Arena in Providence, the Wolf Pack travel to Utica to play the red-hot Comets who are 7-2-1-0 in their last 10. The Comets are in second place in AHL North Division percentage points behind the Rochester Americans. Each team has 44 points. Next Wednesday, the Wolf Pack complete this road game grouping with a drive down to Hershey to face the Bears before they return home on January 10th against the Charlotte Checkers where they will seek to improve on their home record of 14-1-0-2. NOTES: Knoblauch would neither confirm nor deny that defenseman Libor Hajak would be making a rehabilitation assignment in Hartford. The Rangers are on a four-game Canadian road trip. “We haven’t received any notifications or instructions at this point," is all the head coach would say on the subject. So far, Hajak has missed 13 games with a right knee injury he suffered on December 5th after playing the first 27 games. When Hajak does eventually come to Hartford on his rehab assignment, as is being highly speculated among beat writers in New York, somebody will either sit in Hartford or a player will head to New York. The Rangers have dropped three games, including last night’s 4-3 loss to Calgary to ex-Wolf Pack and Ranger goalie Cam Talbot. The team completes the Canadian trip in Vancouver on Saturday night. The Rangers did make two transactions from the Wolf Pack. They recalled center, Ryan Dmowski (Old Lyme/Gunnery Prep) from their ECHL affiliate, the Maine Mariners. In return, after two games, forward, Dillan Fox, was released from his PTO deal and returned to the Mariners. Forward, Patrick Newell, will return to the lineup after a three-game absence the result of an upper-body injury he suffered against Providence. Wolf Pack’s leading scorer, Vinni Lettieri, (11 goals and 24 points in 34 games) and defensemen Joey Keane, and Yegor Rykov, spent nearly a half-hour post-practice working on their shooting techniques. Lettieri has one point, an assist, in his last five games. Former Qunnipiac Bobcat, Brogan Rafferty, was named CCM/AHL Rookie of the Month with three goals and 16 points in 13 games. Rafferty signed as a free agent by the Vancouver Canucks after his junior season. He's third in assists with 25 and leads all defensemen in scoring with 30 points in 34 games, He's also sporting a healthy plus-17 so far. Forward Kieffer Bellows of Bridgeport was named the AHL Forward of the Month with 10 goals in 11 games. Bridgeport sent defenseman, Mike Cormell, and right-wing, Ben Thomson, who's coming off an injury suffered early in the season, to the Worcester Railers (ECHL). Providence got defenseman Jeremy Lauzon back from his recall to the Boston Bruins. Mason Marchment, the son of former Hartford Whaler, Bryan Marchment, was recalled from the Toronto Marlies by the Maple Leafs. Ex-Sound Tiger, Aaron Ness, was returned to the Tucson Roadrunners by the Arizona Coyotes. Goalie, Parker Milner, (Avon Old Farms) was sent to the South Carolina Stingrays (ECHL) by Hershey. Dalton Smith, the nephew of former Whaler, Keith Primeau, was released by Rochester. Ex-Wolf Pack/Ranger, Dale Weise, was recalled from the Laval Rocket by the Montreal Canadiens and got into a first period scrap against the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Patrick Maroon. Rangers President, and one-time New Haven Nighthawk, John Davidson, was selected to enter the Alberta Sports Hall-of-Fame along with six other inductees. The ceremony will be held on July 19th in Canmore, Alberta. The only other CT connection is former Whaler and Ranger, Mike Rogers, who was inducted last year. The WJC semifinals are set, and the US will not be in it. Finland upset the US 1-0 despite a strong game from goalie Spencer Knight (Darien/Avon Old Farms) who made 26 saves. The Canadians took care of business on the Slovaks winning 6-1. Sweden's team saw Rangers prospect, Nils Lundkvist, get an assist and have the second best ice time of 19:30. He shutout and knocked out the host Czech Republic, 5-0 and then Russia upended Switzerland 3-1. The Russians play Sweden in the first semi-final at 3:00 PM local time. The Finns play the Canadians in the other semifinal on Saturday. Finland is coached by ex-Ranger and New Haven Nighthawk, Raimo Helminen, who was in a record-setting six Olympics. He led Finland to a silver as a player in the 1984 WJC, and was the tournament's top scorer. He could gain gold by the end of the weekend. Read the full article

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WOLF PACK WEEKLY: December 30, 2019-January 5, 2020

BY: Bob Crawford, Hartford Wolf Pack HARTFORD, CT - The Wolf Pack (18-8-2-5, 43 pts.) split a pair of divisional games coming out of the Christmas holiday, falling 5-1 in Bridgeport on Friday night and rebounding for a fifth straight home win Saturday night, a 4-1 decision vs. Providence.  Boo Nieves scored the only Hartford goal in Friday’s game and had two assists on Saturday, and Phil DiGiuseppe, Tim Gettinger, Vitali Kravtsov and Matt Beleskey all scored in Saturday’s game. For the latest AHL standings, click here. This week: The Wolf Pack ring out calendar year 2019 with a New Year’s Eve battle against Bridgeport Tuesday at the XL Center.  That game has a special holiday start time of 5:00.  Friday night finds the Wolf Pack in Providence for a 7:05 game, and then the Wolf Pack meet the Utica Comets for the first time on the season Saturday night at the XL Center (7:00). Tuesday, December 31 vs. the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (Islanders) at the XL Center, 5:00 PM This is the Wolf Pack’s New Year’s Eve party, presented by First Night Hartford.  All fans attending the game will receive a button to access First Night Hartford.  There will also be a silent auction, at Sonar’s Locker on the arena concourse, that will benefit First Night Hartford. Friday night’s 5-1 defeat in Bridgeport was the Wolf Pack’s first loss in four meetings with the Sound Tigers this season (3-1-0-0).  In two previous XL Center clashes, the Wolf Pack posted a 4-3 overtime win October 6 and a 4-1 victory October 26. The Sound Tigers followed up Friday night’s win over the Wolf Pack with a 4-3 overtime loss to Springfield Saturday night in Bridgeport.  They are 2-0-1-0 in their last three games and have at least a standings point in five of their last seven contests (4-2-1-0). Kieffer Bellows scored all three Sound Tiger goals in Saturday’s game vs. Springfield, including the tying tally at 19:32 of the third period, for his first pro hat trick and Bridgeport’s first three-goal game of the season.  Bellows has scored in three straight games (5-0-5), and seven of the last eight (9-0-9), and has 12-1-13 in the last 13 games, after scoring once in his first 19 outings. Tickets for this and all 2019-20 Wolf Pack home games are on sale now at the Sunwave Gas & Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com and by phone at (877) 522-8499.  Tickets purchased in advance for kids 12 or younger start at just $10 each, and all tickets will have a $3 day-of-game increase. Broadcast – live with Bob Crawford and Mark Bailey on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com.  Video streaming at theahl.com/AHLTV. Friday, January 3 at the Providence Bruins (Boston) at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center Providence, 7:05 PM This game starts a three-game homestand for the Bruins, who played their last five on the road, losing three of the last four. Joona Koppanen had Providence’s only goal in Saturday night’s 4-1 loss to the Wolf Pack at the XL Center, his seventh of the season. With Saturday’s win, the Wolf Pack have a 5-0-0-1 record in the season series vs. the Bruins, including a pair of wins and a shootout loss in three previous visits to Providence. Broadcast – live with Bob Crawford on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com.  Video streaming at theahl.com/AHLTV. Saturday, January 4 vs. the Utica Comets (Vancouver) at the XL Center, 7:00 PM This is #MillenialNight at the XL Center, featuring a reusable straw set giveaway to all fans attending the game, presented by ProHealth. This is the first of four meetings on the year between the Wolf Pack and the Comets.  The Wolf Pack were 2-1-0-1 in a four-game series last season, and the two teams split a pair of battles in Hartford. The Comets (19-10-2-2, 42 pts.) come into the week on a 4-0-1-0 streak, and two points off the lead in the North Division. Utica veteran Reid Boucher leads the AHL in goals with 20 and is one point off the league points lead, with 39 in 28 games. At this and every Wolf Pack Friday or Saturday home game, fans are encouraged to come early for “Hockey Happy Hour” in the XL Center’s Coliseum Club.  From 5:00 PM until puck drop, a $5 wrist band gives fans access to the “Chill Zone” of the Coliseum Club, which features an appetizer buffet and $2 beers, presented by Minuteman Press. Tickets for this and all 2019-20 Wolf Pack home games are on sale now at the Sunwave Gas & Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com and by phone at (877) 522-8499.  Tickets purchased in advance for kids 12 or younger start at just $10 each, and all tickets will have a $3 day-of-game increase. Broadcast – live with Bob Crawford and Mark Bailey on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com.  Video streaming at theahl.com/AHLTV. Recent Transactions: Phil DiGiuseppe – returned to the Wolf Pack by the New York Rangers December 23. Shawn McBride – recalled by the Wolf Pack from Norfolk (ECHL) December 26. Dillan Fox – Signed to Professional Tryout (PTO) agreement by the Wolf Pack December 28. Steven Fogarty – recalled from the Wolf Pack by the New York Rangers December 28. Pack Tracks: Friday, January 10, when the Wolf Pack host the Charlotte Checkers at 7:15 PM, the first 2,000 fans into the game will receive a free Wolf Pack clear tote bag, intended to reduce plastic waste, courtesy of Lewis Real Estate Services, LLC. Each of the Wolf Pack’s Sunday and Wednesday home games will feature the Wolf Pack’s “Click It or Ticket Hat Trick Pack”.  The Hat Trick Pack includes two tickets, two sodas and a large popcorn, all for just $40.  The next Hat Trick Pack game is Wednesday, February 5, a 7:00 PM battle with the Springfield Thunderbirds. In partnership with the Hartford Chamber of Commerce, the Wolf Pack this year will be offering “Suit to Sweater Wednesdays”, to wash away the mid-week work blues.  Any fan showing a company ID at the Sunwave Gas & Power Ticket office can purchase Blue-Level tickets to Wolf Pack Wednesday home games for only $15 each (limit two tickets per ID).  The Wolf Pack’s next Wednesday home date is February 5, when the Springfield Thunderbirds invade the XL Center for a 7:00 PM game. Once again this season, fans can enjoy $1 hot dogs, and $2 draft beers and fountain sodas, at every Friday Wolf Pack home game, through the start of the second period, presented by Nomads Adventure Quest.  The Wolf Pack’s next Friday-night home outing is January 10, when they entertain the Charlotte Checkers in a 7:15 PM game. Wolf Pack home game tickets can be purchased at the Sunwave Gas & Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com and by phone at (877) 522-8499.  Tickets purchased in advance for kids 12 or younger start at just $10 each, and all tickets will have a $3 day-of-game increase. To speak with a Wolf Pack representative about season or group tickets, or any of the Wolf Pack’s many ticketing options, call (860) 722-9425, or click here to request more info.  To visit the Wolf Pack on line, go to hartfordwolfpack.com. TRACK THE PACK ON-LINE AT HARTFORDWOLFPACK.COM Read the full article

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CANTLON: PACK PLAYERS NOT READY AFTER BREAK IN 5-1 DRUBBING BY SOUND TIGERS

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings BRIDGEPORT, CT - The Bridgeport Sound Tigers pulled away from the visiting Hartford Wolf Pack with three goals in the third period to take control of what was an otherwise tight battle between the intrastate and franchise rivals and won 5-1 at the Webster Bank Arena kicking off the post-holiday break on Friday night. Andrew Ladd had two goals while Otto Koivula added three assists to drive the engine for the Sound Tigers offense. The victory was Bridgeport’s first against the Wolf Pack in four games this season. The Sound Tigers are now 9-1-0-0 when leading after two periods and the Wolf Pack record when trailing after two drops to 2-7-0-1. “We did a good enough job in stretches, but we gave up way too many odd-man rushes and the chances we gave up were really good. (Goaltender) Adam (Huska) kept us in it, particularly in the second where he made some really big saves,” Pack head coach Kris Knoblauch stated. The Wolf Pack record slips to 17-8-2-5 (41 points) and they are second in the Atlantic Division. The team heads back  to Hartford where they will prepare to play the first place Providence Bruins, 4-3 winners over the Springfield Thunderbirds, on Saturday night at 7pm at the XL Center. Igor Shesterkin is slated to be in net, but the Pack will be without team captain Steven Fogarty, who was recalled after the game by the New York Rangers as a result of the broken hand suffered by Brendan Lemieux. With Fogarty heading to the NHL, the Rangers promoted forward Dillan Fox to the Wolf Pack from their ECHL affiliate, the Maine Mariners, and signed him to a PTO deal. In Maine, Fox has 12 goals and 24 total points in 26 games. He is second in scoring behind only Terrance Wallin. Fox is a four-year minor league pro out of Division III SUNY-Plattsburgh (SUNYAC). This will be his first AHL action. Maine dropped a 5-0 game at home to the Reading Royals and will play in Worcester against the Railers on Saturday night. Bridgeport's record improves to 13-16-3-1 (30 points). They sit in seventh place in the Atlantic, just one point ahead of the last place Lehigh Valley Phantoms. The Tigers will host sixth-place Springfield on Saturday night. The Wolf Pack sought to battle back early in the third period and managed to score shorthanded. Fogarty was on the right-wing and waited as he and Boo Nieves broke in on a two-on-one. Nieves broke away from the checking of the Sound Tiger’s Travis St. Denis and got separation and took a cross-ice pass and whistled it for his third goal of the season to the short and stick-side of Jared Coreau at 2:55. The goal narrowed the Sound Tiger lead to one at 2-1. “I really thought we had a chance there scoring early. I really felt we were going to win it when we got to one goal. Then we hit a post and just after the power play ended, they scored and we didn’t recover and they quickly got another one on us,” said Knoblauch. Nieves, who has been snake-bitten in his shooting at times this season, wasn’t going do any victory laps while scoring a goal in a game his team lost. “It was good to get us back in the game at that point, and it gave us a chance. It's only a good feeling if you don’t get scored on a couple times (right after). Then it doesn’t feel so good.” 23-seconds later, Tim Gettinger snapped a shot from off the left-wing side that hit the post. That would be the closest the Wolf Pack would get again. The Sound Tigers pulled away with two goals in a 3:01 span, reestablishing a two goal lead. Ladd tallied his second of the game, and ninth of the season, when he finished off a strong passing sequence. It started with Koivula in the right wing corner hitting Josh Ho-Sang in front of the net. Ho-Sang made a sweet one-touch pass to Ladd, who then deftly put the puck into the back of the net at 6:03. “We can’t give up that much space. This is a good league and players like that are gonna score those. We gave up way too many open shots like that and we're gonna have to clean that up by tomorrow night,” said Nieves. For Bridgeport’s head coach, and former Wolf Pack, Brent Thompson, he had all of his big scoring eggs coming from one basket. Koivula, Ladd, and Ho Sang, who is in his second game after sitting out two months waiting on his trade request. It paid off in big dividends. “Otto had his feet moving tonight. Josh is a high-end caliber talent, and Ladd has that experience. Put all those pieces together, you have a powerful unit." Grant Huston followed with a 55-footer from the left point that found its way through traffic with Koivula starting the scoring play again for Bridgeport at 9:04. Kyle Burroughs put a 195-foot shot into an empty net off a clean defensive zone draw win with 33.4 seconds left to close out the game for the Sound Tigers. The games' first goal came in the second period. After gaining a clean entry, on the power play, the Sound Tigers set up shop. Matt Lorito came in off the right-point. The left-handed shot fired a bullet that Huska stopped, but for the Wolf Pack, the rebound went to the wrong guy. Kieffer Bellows of the Sound Tigers had a wide open net and deposited his team best tenth goal of the season at 10:34. For Bellows, it was his fifth straight game at home with a goal. He has nine goals in his last 12 games and is among the hottest players in the AHL. Thompson was eager to discuss his growth and development. “It's not only his play with the puck, but his play away from the play is better. He was having a tough time at the beginning of the year, but he is learning the systems. The biggest difference is he’s moving his feet and he is getting it now. It's about breaking old habits. You're in a league that is bigger and stronger, and you can’t do things you got away with like you did in college or juniors. The pace changes and I accept that it takes time.  Some break it early. Some take a year. Some take two years. It’s a long road for him, but I couldn’t be happier for him right now his attitude and work ethic. Right now it's all about confidence. 100%, he’s got it. It’s a long year if you stay focused, good things can happen." It was the first time the Sound Tigers have scored the game’s first goal this season in the series between the two teams. “We got that first goal and refocused and got some momentum and started creating chances,” said Thompson. A power-play came a result of an instigator penalty called on Darren Raddysh. He came into the play when Bridgeport’s Robert “Bobo" Carpenter nailed his defensive partner, Vincent LoVerde, from behind. Neither coach could have been happy with the officiating or the linesman. Nieves was tackled in the offensive zone in the second period. No call was made on the play. Joey Keane dropped the puck on the power- play for the trailer and he gets dropped in neutral zone on a solid hit by Carpenter. “You're not trying to get me fined are you?” replied Knoblauch with a smile and a chuckle when he was asked about the officiating. “Sometimes the calls go your way and sometimes they don’t. That’s all I’m gonna say.” Nieves on ice frustration was noticeable, but he stickhandled his way around the question too. “That’s not my area of expertise. It's frustrating and it is what is, but you just can’t let it get in your way.” The Sound Tigers generated half of their 14 shots from the back-line over the first two periods. The Pack got a solid effort from Vitali Kravtsov who had a solid chance at 5:50 of the second period. He then made a tremendous recovery play diving to block a pass to Bellows at the end of his shift. The Sound Tigers staked out a two-goal lead in the last minute of regulation of the second period. Defenseman Tyler Wotherspoon made a strong lead pass to Koivula. He took the pass and went down the left-wing side, spreading out the Wolf Pack defense and then found Ladd, a former NHL first-round pick, open, backdoor.Ladd didn’t miss with 22.7 seconds left in the period. The Pack only managed to put nine shots on net in the second period. “Well, we did go through a long stretch without a shot on net, but I don’t think (we were too choosy). I think we tried to stick-handle too much on our entries rather than chip it deep and get behind their defense,” said Knoblauch. The first period was scoreless with both teams trying to find a rhythm after coming back from the holiday break. Bridgeport had a 5-2 shot advantage in the first ten minutes. Huska made two quality stops on the five denying Grant Huston and then Bellows. Over the final ten minutes though, the Wolf Pack found their stride and outshot their hosts 7-0 and generated some quality chances in the final five minutes. Raddysh, Phil DiGiuseppe, who was just returned from his Rangers recall earlier in the day, Kravtsov, Nick Ebert, and Vincent LoVerde were all denied on solid scoring chances. LoVerde's coming in the final ten seconds of the period. LINES: Nieves - Fogarty - Beleskey O’Regan - Kravtsov - Di Giuseppe Jones - Lettieri - Gettinger Zerter-Gossage - McBride - Gropp Raddysh - LoVerde Keane - Geersten Rykov - Ebert SCRATCHES: Patrick Newell (Upper-Body, day-to-day) Jeff Taylor (Healthy) Lias Andersson (Suspended) Gabriel Fontaine (Season Ending Shoulder Surgery) NOTES: Both teams come off shutouts in their last game before the break. The Wolf Pack white-washed the Providence Bruins, 4-0, with Igor Shesterkin recording 32 saves. Meanwhile, the Sound Tigers shut-out the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 3-0 off a 38-save performance from goalie, Jakub Skarek. It was his first AHL shutout. Bridgeport left the pre-game skate early. Seven Wolf Pack players remained as the clock hits zero. You are required to exit the ice or you can be penalized and fined by the AHL for the violation. There has been some strong goaltending so far this year in Hartford, but out West, Stockton beat San Jose 8-1 with the goaltenders only seeing 19 shots on goal. The G.A.A. for the goalies in that one is not going to look pretty. At the WJC, the US downed Germany 6-3 as a former member of the Avon Old Farms Winged Beavers, Trevor Zegras tallied four assists including a fantastic play off a turn and pass to Connor Hall, who put it in past a thoroughly surprised German goaltender. The Sound Tigers' Oliver Wahlstrom tallied his first goal of the tourney. It was the sixth of the game and came after he came off the left-wing half-wall in the German offensive zone. He cut to the middle and tucked his shot in along the ice. The US squad is off Saturday and will play the Russians on Sunday. Brooklyn Kalmikov, the son of former Sound Tiger, Konstantin Kalmikov, was traded at the QMJHL Trade Deadline from the Cape Breton Eagles to the Victoriaville Tigers. Read the full article

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CRAWFORD: PACK PUMMELED IN POST-BREAK SHOWDOWN IN BRIDGEPORT

Bridgeport Sound Tigers 5, Hartford Wolf Pack 1 BY: Bob Crawford, Hartford Wolf Pack Bridgeport, CT, December 27, 2019 – Andrew Ladd scored twice, and Otto Koivula had three assists, for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers Friday night at Webster Bank Arena, in a 5-1 win over the Hartford Wolf Pack. A Boo Nieves shorthanded goal was the only Wolf Pack score.  Hartford outshot the hosts 31-22 in the game, but Jared Coreau made 30 saves in the Bridgeport net. The game was the first for both teams since Saturday night. “I thought we did a lot of good things, especially for the first game after a long break,” Wolf Pack head coach Kris Knoblauch said.  “One thing I didn’t think we did very well was, we gave up too many odd-man rushes, and they capitalized on those.  But overall, there was a lot of good performances.” After a scoreless first period, in which the Wolf Pack outshot Bridgeport 9-5, the Sound Tigers would score a pair in the second frame. The Bridgeport power play broke the ice at 8:57, after Darren Raddysh was called for instigating a fight with Bobo Carpenter at 7:31. Wolf Pack goaltender Adam Huska (17 saves) stopped a shot from the right-wing circle by Matt Lorito, but Kieffer Bellows found the rebound and held the puck long enough to find some room to Huska’s right through which to flick it in. Ladd doubled the lead with 22.7 seconds left in the second, with his eighth goal in 20 AHL games on the season.  Koivula sliced down the left side in the Wolf Pack zone before feeding across the slot, and Huska had no chance on Ladd’s quick shot. Nieves cut the lead in half 2:55 into the third period, while teammate Nick Jones was serving a holding minor.  Nieves intercepted a Ladd pass in the Wolf Pack zone and broke out on a 2-on-1 with Steven Fogarty.  Fogarty’s pass from the right side in the Sound Tiger zone went off of Bridgeport forward Travis St. Denis’ stick to Nieves, and he put a shot past Coreau high on the stick side. Ladd restored the two-goal margin with his second of the game just 3:08 later, though, at 6:03.  A fine pass by Koivula set Josh Ho-Sang up with open ice in the middle of the Hartford zone, and he found a wide-open Ladd on the left side for an easy finish behind Huska. Grant Hutton made it a 4-1 Bridgeport lead only 3:01 after that, at 9:04.  Sebastian Aho slid a pass from the right boards to Hutton at the middle of the blue line, and his long drive beat Huska to the glove side. Parker Wotherspoon completed the scoring with an empty-net goal with 33.9 seconds left, connecting from the corner of his own zone, after Carpenter won a faceoff to Coreau’s left. The Wolf Pack are back in home-ice action at the XL Center Saturday night, hosting the Providence Bruins.  Faceoff is 7:00, and the first 2,000 fans will receive a free Wolf Pack pennant flag, courtesy of NBC Connecticut. Tickets for  all 2019-20 Wolf Pack home games are on sale now at the Sunwave Gas & Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com and by phone at (877) 522-8499.  Tickets purchased in advance for kids 12 or younger start at just $10 each, and all tickets will have a $3 day-of-game increase. To speak with a Wolf Pack representative about season or group tickets, or any of the Wolf Pack’s many ticketing options, call (860) 722-9425, or click here to request more info.  To visit the Wolf Pack on line, go to hartfordwolfpack.com. Hartford Wolf Pack 1 at Bridgeport Sound Tigers 5 Friday, December 27, 2019 - Webster Bank Arena Hartford     0 0 1 - 1 Bridgeport 0 2 3 - 5 1st Period- No Scoring.  Penalties-No Penalties 2nd Period-1, Bridgeport, Bellows 10 (Lorito, Quenneville), 8:57 (PP). 2, Bridgeport, Ladd 8 (Koivula, Wotherspoon), 19:37. Penalties-Raddysh Hfd (instigating, fighting, misconduct - instigating), 7:31; Carpenter Bri (fighting), 7:31; Schilkey Bri (slashing), 10:34. 3rd Period-3, Hartford, Nieves 3 (Fogarty), 2:55 (SH). 4, Bridgeport, Ladd 9 (Ho-Sang, Koivula), 6:03. 5, Bridgeport, Hutton 3 (Aho, Koivula), 9:04. 6, Bridgeport, Wotherspoon 3 (Carpenter), 19:26 (EN). Penalties-Jones Hfd (holding), 1:08. Shots on Goal-Hartford 9-9-13-31. Bridgeport 5-9-8-22. Power Play Opportunities-Hartford 0 / 1; Bridgeport 1 / 2. Goalies-Hartford, Huska 5-4-4 (21 shots-17 saves). Bridgeport, Coreau 5-8-1 (31 shots-30 saves). A-6,271 Referees-Dan Kelly (45), Alex Normandin (65). Linesmen-Nick Briganti (58), Andrew Bell (43). Read the full article

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CRAWFORD: WOLF PACK WEEKLY: December 23-29, 2019

BY: Bob Crawford, Hartford Wolf Pack HARTFORD, CT - The Wolf Pack (17-7-2-5, 41 pts.) headed into the Christmas holiday in a tie for first place in the Atlantic Division with Providence, after a 3-0 win over the Bruins Saturday night at the XL Center.  Igor Shesterkin made 31 saves in that game for his, and the team’s, third shutout of the season, and his second in the last two home games.  Phil DiGiuseppe scored for a third straight game, netting the game-winner, Matt Beleskey had a goal and an assist, and Vitali Kravtsov scored his first career North American pro goal.  That was after the Wolf Pack lost a pair of road games at Charlotte on consecutive nights, falling 6-3 to the Checkers Tuesday and 7-1 on Wednesday. For the latest AHL standings, click here. This week: The Wolf Pack return from their Christmas break with back-to-back divisional games, visiting Bridgeport at 7:00 on Friday night and hosting Providence in a 7:00 tilt on Saturday. Friday, December 27 at the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (Islanders) at Webster Bank Arena, 7:00 PM This is the fourth meeting of the year, and the first since October 27, for the AHL’s two Connecticut teams, and the Wolf Pack have swept the first three, including two overtime wins.  In their only previous visit to Bridgeport October 27, the Wolf Pack prevailed 2-1 in OT. After going 4-11-3-1 in their first 19, the Sound Tigers are 8-5-0-0 in 13 games since November 23, including wins in five of their last six home games. Kieffer Bellows has the game-winning goal in two of Bridgeport’s last three wins and has eight goals in the last 11 games (8-1-9), after scoring only once in his first 19 outings. Broadcast – live with Bob Crawford on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com.  Video streaming at theahl.com/AHLTV. Saturday, December 28 vs. the Providence Bruin (Boston) at the XL Center, 7:00 PM The first 2,000 fans into the game will receive a free Wolf Pack pennant flag, courtesy of NBC Connecticut. Fans are encouraged to bring their skates to this game, as there will be a free post-game skate on the XL Center ice. Saturday’s 3-0 loss to the Wolf Pack in Hartford was the Bruins’ second consecutive shutout-against.  Their previous outing was a 1-0 defeat at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Wednesday night.  Prior to those two losses, Providence had been 10-2-1-0 in its previous 13 contests. The ten-game season series between the Wolf Pack and Bruins starts its second half with this battle, after the Wolf Pack went 4-0-0-1 in the first five match-ups of the year. Former Wolf Pack and New York Ranger defenseman Steven Kampfer, a tenth-year pro, has four assists in six games since being assigned to Providence by the parent Boston Bruins December 9. At this and every Wolf Pack Friday or Saturday home game, fans are encouraged to come early for “Hockey Happy Hour” in the XL Center’s Coliseum Club.  From 5:00 PM until puck drop, a $5 wrist band gives fans access to the “Chill Zone” of the Coliseum Club, which features an appetizer buffet and $2 beers, presented by Minuteman Press. Tickets for this and all 2019-20 Wolf Pack home games are on sale now at the Sunwave Gas & Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com and by phone at (877) 522-8499.  Tickets purchased in advance for kids 12 or younger start at just $10 each, and all tickets will have a $3 day-of-game increase. Broadcast – live with Bob Crawford and Mark Bailey on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com.  Video streaming at theahl.com/AHLTV. Recent Transactions: Ryan Dmowski – returned by the Wolf Pack to Maine (ECHL) December 18. Phil DiGiuseppe – recalled from the Wolf Pack by the New York Rangers December 22. Pack Tracks: Saturday, January 4, when the Wolf Pack host the Utica Comets at 7:00 PM, it’s #MillenialNight at the XL Center, featuring a reusable straw set giveaway to all fans attending the game, presented by ProHealth. Each of the Wolf Pack’s Sunday and Wednesday home games will feature the Wolf Pack’s “Click It or Ticket Hat Trick Pack”.  The Hat Trick Pack includes two tickets, two sodas and a large popcorn, all for just $40.  The next Hat Trick Pack game is Wednesday, February 5, a 7:00 PM battle with the Springfield Thunderbirds. In partnership with the Hartford Chamber of Commerce, the Wolf Pack this year will be offering “Suit to Sweater Wednesdays”, to wash away the mid-week work blues.  Any fan showing a company ID at the Sunwave Gas & Power Ticket office can purchase Blue-Level tickets to Wolf Pack Wednesday home games for only $15 each (limit two tickets per ID).  The Wolf Pack’s next Wednesday home date is February 5, when the Springfield Thunderbirds invade the XL Center for a 7:00 PM game. Once again this season, fans can enjoy $1 hot dogs, and $2 draft beers and fountain sodas, at every Friday Wolf Pack home game, through the start of the second period, presented by Nomads Adventure Quest.  The Wolf Pack’s next Friday-night home outing is January 10, when they entertain the Charlotte Checkers in a 7:15 PM game. Wolf Pack home game tickets can be purchased at the Sunwave Gas & Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com and by phone at (877) 522-8499.  Tickets purchased in advance for kids 12 or younger start at just $10 each, and all tickets will have a $3 day-of-game increase. To speak with a Wolf Pack representative about season or group tickets, or any of the Wolf Pack’s many ticketing options, call (860) 722-9425, or click here to request more info.  To visit the Wolf Pack on line, go to hartfordwolfpack.com. TRACK THE PACK ON-LINE AT HARTFORDWOLFPACK.COM Read the full article

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CANTLON: PACK WIN AGAIN IN OVERTIME

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings BRIDGEPORT, CT - The Hartford Wolf Pack remains unbeaten after a Darren Raddysh goal in overtime gave the home team a 2-1 road victory over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers Sunday afternoon. It was the third Wolf Pack OT victory in their last four games and completed a sweep of the home-and-home series. It was the Wolf Pack’s fifth overtime game of the young season and a timely player change led to the goal. Ryan Lindgren sent a pass for Danny O’Regan in the left-wing corner and went to the bench for a change. With the Pack bench on the Sound Tigers side of the ice making it easier to change, it allowed Raddysh to jump on the ice and take a perfect tape-to-tape pass from Matt Beleskey, and in one motion hit the short-side to turn on the red light and give the Pack the victory. Raddysh was all smiles and fist-pumping on his game-winning goal, his first of the season, as he was mobbed by his teammates. “I was getting closer the last couple of games (to scoring), but  (Beleskey) put the perfect pass back door for me to shoot it. We try to keep short shifts in three-on-three and it paid off.” Pack Head Coach, Chuck Knoblauch, was happy with the efforts of all of his players on the game-winning play. “He (Lindgren) wasn’t tired, but when you look at it, as a left-handed shot, he would have received it likely on his backhand, where Rad as a righty was able to get it and made the shot in one motion.” Knoblauch was thrilled as the Pack swept their first three-in-three weekend which hasn’t happened in some time. The work of Beleskey and O’Regan was critical for Knoblauch. “They both won their battles to get the puck. The third game in 36 hours and you're tired and that extra effort, that pays off for us.” The Wolf Pack is now one win shy of equaling the team record for the best season start at 8-0-0-1. They're in first place in the AHL Atlantic Division, something that hasn’t been associated with a Wolf Pack team in almost five years. The record of nine straight to start the regular season was set in 2003-04. They were all regulation wins. Conversely, the Sound Tigers are off to their worst start in franchise history at 1-6-1-1. The Wolf Pack have reversed their fortune from the end of last season. “It's the first time I can remember sweeping a three-in-three since I’ve been here,“ said Pack captain, Steven Fogarty. King od amazing that it comes in his fourth year in Hartford “It was a greasy game and again, we found a way to win. Shesty (goaltender, Igor Shestyorkin) played another great game in net, and he and Adam (Huska) give us a chance to win every night.” Just before the game-winner, the Sound Tigers nearly scored themselves as Kieffer Bellows was a recipient of an ill-advised cross-ice pass from Sean Day, but Shestyorkin (29 saves) was equal to the task and kept the puck out of the net. Earlier, the Sound Tigers broke a scoreless duel off a faceoff win. The Sound Tigers' John Stevens won the faceoff cleanly from O’Regan and sent it back to Carter Hutton at the left point. With hordes of traffic in front of the net and a broken stick on the ice, he slipped a 25-foot wrist shot to the far-side past Shestyorkin, who never saw the shot at 14:40. The Wolf Pack struck back quickly and just seconds later. Boo Nieves was in the top of the Sound Tigers' zone and corralled a loose puck while being knocked down by David Quenneville. Nieves shifted the puck over to Vinni Lettieri on the left-wing side. In turn, he slipped a pass over to Fogarty, who made no mistake on the shot burying it for his first goal of the season. “Anytime you can score and help your team to win feels good. I’ve had my chances lately, and finally, it went in. Nice play by Boo and Vinni. All I had to was make sure it went in." As expected in the third game of a three-in-three weekend, in the first period the Wolf Pack had a tough time coming out of the chute and with the Sound Tigers seeking to avenge last night’s loss, they had the extra step. The Wolf Pack had the right antidote, Shestyorkin. Playing in his first AHL road game, he seemed as unflappable as he's been at home, stopping all 12 Sound Tigers shots including the first from Jeff Kubiak. Then at 4:55, Parker Wotherspoon came from the left point with a bang-bang play. Shestyorkin got some big help from Day, back in the lineup after being a defensive healthy scratch the last two games. Off a turnover, the Sound Tigers had a blossoming three-on-one with Travis St. Denis, the Quinnipiac University product, feeding Matt Lorito a pass for a shot, but Day got back and lifted his stick, and the puck as well. Shestyorkin stopped Steve Bernier on the Sound Tigers' first powerplay and then Colin MacDonald (Wethersfield) twice from the left-wing. In between those two chances, the Wolf Pack had their first quality chance shorthanded. O’Regan had a shorthanded breakaway, but as he got to the net and was about to make his move, he lost control of the puck and never got his shot off. The Wolf Pack had two other solid chances. First, it was Nick Jones on a backhander, and then it was Gabriel Fontaine off a two-on-one bid from the right-wing faceoff circle. NOTES: Vitali Kravtsov's return to Russia is official. He signed a one-year, two-way deal as a loan to Traktor Chelyabinsk (KHL). This allows the Rangers to recall him anytime should such a situation arise. He is still eligible to return to Hartford when the regular season or the Gagarin Cup playoffs for Traktor end since his original entry-level deal was signed before December 1st. He will wear his number 74 shedding the 91 he wore in Hartford. The Rangers lost to the Boston Bruins 7-4 on Sunday night. It's safe to assume that it's likely a few Pack players will not be in Canada this weekend with the team. LINES: Chytil-Beleskey-DiGiuseppe Nieves-Lettieri-Fogarty O’Regan-Fontaine-Newell Jones-Gettinger-Meskanen Lindgren-Raddysh LoVerde-Day Geersten-Keane SCRATCHES: Nick Ebert Ty Ronning The Wolf Pack hit the road next week with two games in Laval Rocket at the Place Bell Centre to play on Wednesday and Friday before heading to Belleville and the CAA Arena on Saturday. The next home game is November 8 against Hershey. Ex-Sound Tiger defenseman, Jessie Graham, has signed with HK Nitra (Slovakia-SLEL). He played in Utica last season and that makes him the 77th AHL player from last season to sign in Europe and Asia. He was in Charlotte’s training camp and was among the last cuts. Ex-Sound Tiger goalie, David Leggio, is playing Canadian senior league hockey with the Brantford Blast (ACH) and another Blaine Down is with the Whitby Dunlops (ACH). Chris Willkie, the son of ex-Wolf Pack, David Wilkie, had his NHL rights traded from Florida to Ottawa. Wilkie is currently a senior at Colorado College (NCHC) where he transferred from North Dakota. Dalton Duhart, the son of ex-Danbury Trasher, Jim Duhart, was traded from Barrie Colts (OHL) to the Saginaw Spirit (OHL). Devante Smith-Pelly, who split last year with Washington and Hershey, signs with Kunlun (China-KHL). That makes 78 AHL players from last season to sign in Europe or Asia. Read the full article

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CANTLON: WOLF PACK WIN IN OT OVER SOUND TIGERS

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - Sean Day’s rising wrist shot eluded the glove of Bridgeport Sound Tigers goalie Christopher Gibson at 2:28 of overtime giving the Hartford Wolf Pack a 4-3 win to complete their first weekend of the season on a positive note before an announced crowd of 1,751. Day took a pass from Phil Di Giuseppe and curled back off the right-wing, found an open seam and let his shot rip. The puck caught the top, left-hand corner, for the victory. “Once the guy backed off, I was able to go down the middle and that’s an easy shot in this league. I thought I was aiming top shelf,” Day said with a laugh and a sheepish grin. "It was a pretty tight shot. I thought we played the game really well and to come out with a win, was huge.” For Day, it was a game of celebration playing his first two games and was his first actual contact hockey so far. He was a red (no-contact) jersey in training camp as he recovered from the off-season surgery to his left hip. “It's even better than last year because I started off getting sent down (to Maine). I’m starting to build up my confidence, that helps, and I’m finding a role.  I’m not fighting for (ice) time as many younger players do and the coaches have put a lot of trust in me and playing with more confidence because of that. Get a couple of points with these wins and a goal helps me a lot.” After a wild first period with five goals between the two teams, it was a defensive battle the rest of the way. The Sound Tigers capitalized on the only glitch for Hartford in the third period off a broken play in their own zone. Wethersfield native Colin McDonald captured the biscuit on a turnover and put the puck out front for ex-Pack captain Ryan Bourque who snapped the bouncing puck and found then back of the net for his first of the season. His enthusiasm for the goal was obvious as he pumped his fist as he likes scoring against Hartford. The goal tied the score at three. Adam Huska had two quality saves late in the second. The first came on Bourque’s right-wing shot as he got the puck with a right skate and a proper kick to the corner, but the Sound Tigers Cole Bardreau snared the rebound fired it right back. Huska made the save to keep the lead for Hartford. “We were outstanding taking the puck away, keeping the neutral zone and not allowing them to freewheel. When they did a get a chance Adam was right there to make the saves,” commented head coach Kris Knoblauch of his Slovak rookie netminder. The only other action of the period of significance was the regular season’s first fight as Tanner Fritz went after Mason Geersten after a clean hit. Geersten earned a clear decision in that scrap. The second period was a tight, defensive affair as both coaches figured five goals a period might not be the best idea and both clamped down their defense. “I like to play these games when it's close checking. They like to chip pucks in and bang bodies, and so I thought we did a good job on them. I thought we played well both nights. We have good skill, good goaltending, and we worked hard against them. Day made such a good play, it was a fun weekend,” remarked defenseman Ryan Lindgren. Lots of scoring broke out from the mid-point of the first period. At 4:20 Vinni Lettieri bagged his second goal of the campaign after receiving a pass from Steven Fogarty along the goal line and at the right side of the net. He got two whacks at the puck with the second going over the glove of Sound Tiger starting goalie Christopher Gibson. Then things got fun. The Sound Tigers tied the game at one on a penalty shot. Matt Loritio had a break-in and was harassed by Lindgren. The call was maybe a minor penalty for a slash, but a penalty shot? It seemed like a weak case for that. Lorito got the chances and got Huska down and lifted the puck past him for his second of the season at 11:41. The Wolf Pack regained the lead 2:07 later. Oliver Wahlstrom took Kieffer Bellows nifty short pass from center ice at the Wolf Pack blue line, burst down the left-wing side and sent a backhanded shot off the near post and it went in off the far post at 13:46. The Wolf Pack tied the game at two as Joey Keane scored his second goal of the young season deep in the right-wing corner and put a sharp angle shot on net that looked like Patrick Newell had deflected it, but it got past goalie Christopher Gibson at 15:30. A 16:29, Lindgren made a beautiful solo dash and got past Wahlstrom’s stick check at the blue line. Kindgren then made a good move on Sound Tigers defenseman Kyle Burroughs and went backhand to forehand and put it past Gibson to restore a 3-2 Wolf lead. “I didn’t know Lindy had it in him,“ Knoblauch said with a laugh. Lindgren earned the team heavyweight belt for that goal and another tough shot blocking man-on-man defensive play. “That was nice.“ Lindgren said, seemingly surprised at his own play. “It was nice to have that space and just took it to the net, so that felt pretty good.” The defenseman clearly have the green light to pursue offense. “We have a lot of guys who can jump up into the play and are very skilled on the backend. So you gotta find the right time to do it and that was a good time for me to jump up.” NOTES: The actual fans in the seats were no more than 300, and for a second night in a row, there was no heat on in the building. They should rename the building the icebox on Asylum Street. The announced 1,751 was the 14th worst crowd in Wolf Pack history. A very poor opening for attendance to start the season in Hartford. Wolf Pack Scratches: It comes as no surprise that Vitali Kravtsov was given the game off after being benched last night. Ville Meskanen was in for him. The other three scratches were the same as last night defenseman Jeff Taylor and Brandon Crawley and the other forward, Ryan Gropp. Sound Tiger Scratches: The team had 12 of them include Josh Ho-Sang, Steve Bernier, Ben Thomson. Erik Brown injured in the pre-season game at Trinity College against Hartford is still out with a left leg injury. Scott Eansor at age 23 retired from pro hockey earlier in the week playing his last game in the exhibition finale in at Webster Bank Arena. LINES: Steven Fogarty-Vinni Lettieri-Phil Di Giuseppe Danny O’Regan-Boo Nieves-Matt Beleskey Gabrial Fontaine-Filip Chytil-Patrick Newell Tim Gettinger-Nick Jones-Ville Meskanen Ryan Lindgren-Jeff LoVerde Sean Day-Darren Raddysh Joey Keane-Mason Geersten As a team, the Wolf Pack have taken 53 penalty shots in team history. The last one to score was Dan Catenacci on April 14, 2017. Their opponents have had 39 chances. Read the full article